


Competitive

by natrice



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-01
Packaged: 2018-08-12 12:13:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7934200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natrice/pseuds/natrice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lavellan doesn't mean for these things to happen; they just do. She's just a very competitive elf, with the tendency to turn everything into a competition.<br/>So when the strange man in the silent study room responds to her unintentional noise by creating more, well, she takes it as a challenge.<br/>And then it escalates.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

When Professor Tethras dismissed the class Ellana let out a sigh of relief. There was reading due in her next class that she had yet to complete, and her break was only so long. Hopefully, though, the hour she'd given herself for lunch would suffice.

Still, the cafeteria would be much too loud. And she couldn't bring food into the library....Hm. Food...or The Reading? Ugh. By the Dread Wolf, she knew Giselle would wind up calling on her if she didn't read. Still... food was, well, food.

She nearly smacked herself when she realized the solution to her problem.

The honors program had set aside a small lounge area for the honors students, for whatever they felt like using it for. It was quiet, not usually crowded, and, most importantly, welcomed food.

She headed into the room in a great mood, feeling pleased with herself for finding a solution to her problem.

There was only one other occupant, an oldish student sitting at the large desk near the door.

Oh, well. There were other spots in the small room. She decided on a seat at a tiny round table for two people, plopping down in the chair and digging through her bag.

At the small noise her zipper made, however, the man sighed.

She paused, feeling a little bad. Maybe he was trying to study? Better get all the noise out of the way now, then. She quickly pulled out her book and sandwich, cringing at each noise she made.

She finally settled in, relieved the brief annoyance she had caused was over.

That was, until he clicked his pen, the noise seeming to echo in the silent room.

Whatever, writing utensils were necessary. A bit annoying, but nothing outlandish.

She'd deal.

He clicked it again.

And again.

A fourth time.

This was...this was a _challenge._

She waited a second, and then began noisily looking through her bag, searching for her notebook.

After all, it only made sense for her to take notes.

She pulled it out, making sure to place it on the table in front of her with an audible thud.

Oh  
    No  
       How  
Unfortunate.

That'd show him.

And she thought it had, until he began looking through the desk drawers for no apparent reason, opening them for a few seconds and then nearly slamming them shut.

_The audacity._

She nearly shuddered in revulsion, until she remembered her secret weapon.

The chips.

She pulled them out of her bag, eager to eat them. Loudly.

But he beat her to it, already crunching pretzels before she could so much as lift one from the baggie.

**No.**

He. Would. Not. Win.

She started tapping her feet against the tile, as though it was a nervous habit.  
But it wasn't. It was revenge.  
And she was determined to enact it against this horrendous man, he who had dared to rise against her.

She pulled out her phone.

Did she dare?

He began organizing his binder, loudly opening the metal section holding paper so that the medal clanged . 

That was it. He had signed his death sentence. 

She turned her phone's volume all the way up. She typed in the number deliberately, feeling as though she handled nuclear launch codes. Because, really, what she was about to do to this man was just as horrifying.

She was preparing to call her _mom._

Just as she pressed enter, a figure strode through the door and approached the man. They waved their hand in front of him to grab his attention before rapidly moving graceful hands through the air.

Wait...he wasn't...?

The man responded, contorting his hands into various shapes just as quickly.

Fuck. He was deaf.

And now she had to talk to her mother.


	2. Chapter 2

She spent nearly fourty minutes on the phone with her mom, telling her about the situation she'd made up in her mind that lead to their conversation.

They'd laughed, and her mom had teased her for a decent amount of time before moving on to nagging her about practically everything- her job, her schoolwork, her major, her lack of a boyfriend. 

The last one mostly because she'd commented on how attractive her former nemesis of noise is.

She eventually begged off the phone, telling her she had to do homework before class started.

It wasn't until she hung up that she remembered she actually  _did_ have reading to do. 

Shit.

She glanced at the time; to be on time to class she'd need to leave in about five minutes, and that was nearly how much time it would take just to pack up.

Well, double shit.

The only thing to do was to pray she wasn't called on during class.

She shot the man and his friend a glare. If only he hadn't decided to hang out in here today.

She groaned and slammed her book shut, happy to at least be able to voice her displeasure without being heard.

She glanced up at the sound of...laughter?

The man was laughing, looking straight at her.

She frowned, confused. He bit his lip, trying to stifle his amusement.

She turned away, and picked up her bag before dropping it on the table, where it made an ungodly loud sound from all the books. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him flinch.

Wait, what?

She turned towards him. "Did you hear that?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I have ears, do I not?"

She froze, a look of horror slowly growing on her face as she remembered everything she'd said to her mom in front of him, thinking him unable to hear.

He rose from the desk and walked towards her, stopping only a few inches from her. "It is my dear friend who is hearing impaired. I am fortunate enough to have heard every word you've spoken in this room."

She swallowed, made nervous by his proximity.

He leaned down towards her, and she felt the blood rush to her face. "I-i see..."

He smirked, amused at her embarrassment. He reached around her, tucking a piece of paper into her open bag. "Should you wish to assuage your mother's fears for your romantic life, feel free to call me."

Her blush only deepened, both from the embarrassment of his revelation and the anger his insensitive comments produced. 

He turned back towards his friend, quickly exchanging a few hand motions. "Ah, forgive me. I must return to my companion. I assume you have class, do you not?"

She swallowed, hastily closing and grabbing her bag. "Yes. I had better get going." She hastened to the door, vowing never to return to the honors lounge. 

He called out once more to her as she reached the door.

"I look forward to seeing you again, my friend."

She glanced at him and paused, seeing the earnest smile on his face. He suddenly seemed to be as nervous as she was; maybe the bravado was an act?

The clock on the wall caught her eye, however, and she was forced to save the exploration of her hunch for another time. Still, she found herself smiling as she called back a goodbye to him; Maybe she'd-oh shit, the hallway was nearly empty.

There was no way she was going to make it to class on time.

**Author's Note:**

> Everything preceding the phone call actually happened to me today. I wrote this while I was in the lounge to make noise by typing. (I have a problem.)


End file.
